


unlike

by WattStalf



Series: soulmates [3]
Category: Durarara!!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, F/M, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-06
Updated: 2016-12-06
Packaged: 2018-09-06 23:47:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,747
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8774455
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WattStalf/pseuds/WattStalf
Summary: Shinra decides from a young age he doesn't care who his soul mate is; Celty will never have a soul mate; Izaya gets an unlucky draw.





	

**Author's Note:**

> uhhhh????  
> insert shruggie emoji here

Shinra grows up without a mother in his life, and he grows up without the romantic stories most people are told about soul mates and how important they are. He first learns about soul mates at school, and when he comes home to ask his father about it, his father explains it as simply as possible.

“I was waiting until you were a little older to tell you about this, but if you already know, I suppose that there's no helping it. When you're older, you'll have a name appear on your wrist, and that person is your soul mate. They're the person you're meant to fall in love with and marry,” he says, matter-of-factly.

“Can I see your wrist?” asks Shinra, as curious as any child would be. He thinks that this is his chance to find out about his father's love life and about the mother he's never really known.

Shingen sighs, hesitating for a moment before removing his glove and letting Shinra read the letters on his wrist. He has a hard time figuring out how to pronounce the name there, but his father helps correct him until he has it right.

“Emilia Adams,” he says. “Is that my mother?”

There is a long pause before his father speaks, and he simply says, “No, it isn't.”

“But, then, why-”

“Enough questions for today, Shinra. I think we've had a long enough discussion, right? Besides, I have to go on a trip tomorrow, so you know I have a lot of work to do to get ready.”

Shinra is a little bit disappointed that he hasn't learned anything new, but he is also excited, because a trip means that he will have the house mostly to himself, which means that he will get to spend a lot of time alone with Celty.

~X~

As he grows, Shinra's questions about soul mates grow, but not all of those questions get answers. Namely, his father never speaks about his soul mate or Shinra's mother, and when Shinra gets answers to some questions, they usually don't satisfy him, such as Celty claiming that, since she is not human, she won't have a soul mate.

“But what if you could be with a human?” he would ask.

“ _That human would already have a soul mate, so I wouldn't interfere_ ,” she would answer. “ _Besides, that's incredibly unlikely._ ”

“If I could have any soul mate in the world, I would want it to be you,” he always says, and she always brushes him off. However, he means every word he says, and he decides from a young age that, even if Celty doesn't get a soul mate, he's more than willing to fit that role. His own soul mate can learn to live with the disappointment.

“That reminds me,” he says. “How come my dad won't talk to me about _his_ soul mate?”

“ _If he doesn't want to tell you, then I don't think it's my place to say anything._ ”

“What?! He told _you_ , but he won't tell his own son? How is that fair?”

“ _To be honest, I really don't know why he told me about it. Are you sure you want to find out from me, instead of asking him yourself?_ ”

“I _have_ asked him before, and he just blows me off! Come on, who is she?”

“ _The thing is, he doesn't know who she is. He hasn't met her yet. He met your mother before her name showed up, apparently, and the two of them decided to stay together even after they found out who their soul mates were, and that was when they had you. But, it seems, your mother eventually met her soul mate when you were very young, and left to be with him._ ”

“I know what you're thinking. 'Why would she even wanna be with a creep like that when he wasn't her soul mate?' Right?” Shinra grins at her, making fun of her not-so-secret dislike of his father, rather than replying to the big news he's just learned. “Or maybe you're thinking that his soul mate is lucky that she hasn't had to deal with him yet?”

“ _What are you talking about? Shouldn't you be a little bit more concerned about what I told you, rather than what I think?_ ”

“Nah,” he says with a shrug. “If he didn't tell me, then that means he doesn't want me to be concerned, but I'm always concerned about what you think!” He beams at her and her shoulders sag in exasperation.

Shinra decides, on that day, that he will not let anything get in the way of him being with Celty. His dad came close to being with someone that was not his soul mate; Shinra will try even harder than him, and he will succeed.

~X~

He wakes up one morning in high school and, while reaching for the soap to wash his face, realizes that there are letters on his wrist now.

_Izaya Orihara_ .

He stares for a moment, the face of one of his friends coming to mind, before he says to himself, “Nah, I don't want him.”

When he gets to school that day, he debates about whether or not he should come right out and ask Izaya what he thinks about it, but, for the most part, the other boy avoids him too much for him to do much of anything. And that is, of course, enough of an answer, and he decides to let it be, for the time being. After all, he's already got his own plans, and those plans only involve Celty.

When they do finally speak about it, Izaya only says, “I don't care if your my soul mate or not. Honestly, I don't care about any of that.”

“Fine by me,” he replies with an easy smile. “I'm already in love with somebody else, anyway, remember? So I really couldn't be with you anyway.”

He scoffs and asks, “Are you still going on about that? What are you going to do when this other person finds  _their_ soul mate?”

“Oh, I don't think I have to worry about that.”

~X~

It isn't until after high school that Celty confronts him about it, on a day when he attempts to act affectionately towards her. “ _I can't wait until you find out who your soul mate is, so you'll cut that out..._ ”

“But I've known who my soul mate is for a few years now,” he replies offhandedly. “It never changed anything, cos I already decided that I only want to be with you.”

“ _What?! You already know who your soul mate is and you didn't say anything?_ ”

“Well, I didn't really think you were interested,” he says with a smile. “Besides, it doesn't matter!”

“ _Who is it? Do I know them?_ ”

He pulls up his sleeve, and he can tell without her saying a thing that she isn't pleased by the name she sees. Laughing, he says, “Yeah, he's not the best guy to get stuck with, but better me than someone else, I guess.”

“ _Did you at least tell your dad when this happened?_ ”

“Oh, well, he was out of town, and I guess it slipped my mind for so long that it just never came up. I mean, he never asked.”

~X~

The thing about Izaya is, Shinra isn't able to shake him. This is how, despite his claims of the opposite, Shinra is able to tell that he actually does care. He still keeps in touch, he still badgers Shinra about his feelings for Celty, and he's starting to try to drag Celty into jobs that she really shouldn't be doing, and it's all too obvious what this means.

“You know, I'm not going to change my mind,” says Shinra one day, answering a call.

“As if that's what I wanted to talk to you about.”

“Say what you want, but I know that you still think about it. I'm sorry you got such a rotten draw, but my heart belongs entirely to Celty!”

“You have to realize how sick your infatuation is.”

“Maybe it is, but I don't really care,” he says. “I know this must be very hard for you to accept, but I'm just not interested in being your soul mate. But we can still be friends!”

“...you really are sick, you know that?”

~X~

He wins her over slowly, but it is entirely worth it to him. After all these years of promising himself that he would fight whatever sort of destiny he had with a soul mate, he gets his way, and that almost means as much to him as what he's gotten as a result.

One day, not long after this, he talks to his father about things, and he is asked who his soul mate is.

“It doesn't matter. I have Celty, and I've let them know that I'm not changing my mind.”

“Are you sure that's a good idea?”

“She told me once, you know. About my mom,” he says. “I know that you tried to do something like that, once.”

There is a long pause before Shingen speaks. “I've met my actual soul mate, you know. Fairly recently, actually. Maybe I'll let you meet her soon.”

“You do understand why I won't be with mine, don't you?”

Another pause. “I loved your mother a lot, I hope you realize. I thought I could make it work, even though we weren't...so, naturally, I want to encourage you to do whatever makes you happy. But...” He sighs. “But I'm happier now then I ever was. I also wish I could encourage you to not make such a hasty decision. You could end up better off if you go with the person you're meant to.”

“I appreciate the sentiment, but I'm not changing my mind.” The conversation ends there, and his father doesn't apologize for never telling him the truth himself or never asking about his own soul mate, and he doesn't explain if, when saying he's happier now than before, that he only means the time with his first wife, or if he means everything. But Shinra decides that he doesn't care either way.

~X~

Even though he knows better, Shinra is the first person Izaya calls when he ends up in the hospital with a stab wound. Predictably, the doctor is far too concerned with other things to bother with it, and Izaya can only laugh and wonder why he cares so damn much.

 


End file.
